I borrowed a 2003 AC 400 automaitc for a weekend at Hatfield McCoy. I have to say that it was the nastiest, scariest handling ATV I have ever been on. First, it was hard to turn the bars past straight ahead, and then, once they got to about 10 degrees, they wanted to turn all the way and cause a roll over. It was a workout all weekend. So, at one point I switched with a friend who had a 2003 Honda Foreman 400. What a dream that was to ride. He didn't stay on the AC long. He had the same issue I had. This AC is in perfect shape, all stock, under 200 miles on it, and everything is in spec and like it is supposed to be. Tires, toe in, camber, tie rods, steering stem, everything is good. So, my question is "Is this normal for this machne?" I will say that the few things I did like were the 4wd in & out paddle next to my left knee/foot. I could put it in without letting go of the bars (and I sure didn't want to let go of those). And the trans was nice. No shifting. I was pretty sore from holding on to this beast for 2 days.

 

I drove an AC 400 once for about a hlaf hour. Handled bad, rode bad, looked bad. I could not wait to get off that thing. A total POS. About an hour later another guy rolled it down a hill. He was unhurt, the quad was junk. Well, more junk than before he rolled it.

 

The old Cats have bad handling. My 05 AC 650 V2 has bad handling but I learned its little tricks and quirks. Takes time & practice

 

[QUOTE"Is this normal for this machine?" ][/QUOTE]
Why post in the Honda forum when asking about a AC machine? There is a lot more AC owners over in the AC forum.

 

My GF's dad had an AC 650 H1. It has tons of ground clearance but isn't tippy, but also rode like an absolute brick. Backing off the preload helped somewhat.

The steering would also fight you, especially down hill over rough terrain.

After we were done switching machines, he didn't want to give up my Rincon. Now he has an Outlander...